Improvement in toe-weights for horseshoes



L. SOHMITT. Toe-Weight for Horseshoes.

No. 214,846. Patented April 29, 1879.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LEOPOLD SGHMITT, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK.

IMPROVEMENT IN TOE-WEIGHTS FOR HORSESHOES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 214,846, dated April29, 1879; application filed February 26, 1879.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, LEoPoLn ScHMrrr, of thecity of Rochester, county of Monroe, and State of New York, haveinvented a certain new and useful Improvement in Toe-Weights forHorseshoes; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear,and exact description of the same, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation of myimprovement. Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation of the weight and shankremoved from the shoe. Fig. 3 is a plan view of the inner side of theweight. Fig. 4 is an elevation of the inner or back side of the shank.Figs. 5, 6, and 7 are detail views of portions of the shoe, showing themethod of attaching the shank.

My invention relates to toe weights for horses; and consists of thecombination of a slotted toe-weight, adjustable to different positionson the foot of the horse, and a bent shank provided with a circularhead, which fits the slots in the weight, and a wedging and dovetailedslide, which fits a corresponding wedging and dovetailed slot in theshoe, as hereinafter more fully described.

A represents the shoe, which is of ordinary form and construction.

B is the toe-weight, which is an oblong or eccentric body of any desiredsize.

On the inner face or side which fits the foot are formed quarter-slots aa a a, with a central cavity, b, sunken some distance below the surface.The central cavity is situated at one side of the center of its axis, ornearer one end than the other, as shown, by which means the toe-weightis made eccentric to its axis.

0 is the shank, which supports the toeweight. It consists of an angulararm, 0, which forms the body, and a horizontal part, 61, which forms theslide and bearing that fits the shoe.

At the 'top of the arm 0 is a circular beveled head, f, which fits intothe center cavity, b, of the weight, while the arm 0 rests in the slota, and prevents the toe-weight from turnmg.

A screw, 9, passes through a hole in the weight and the head, andsecures the parts firmly together.

The horizontal part (1 is made Wedge-shaped in its length, the wide endbeing in the rear and the narrow end in front; and it is also madebeveling or dovetailed on its edges, .the wide face being at the bottomand the narrow face at the top.

The wedge form is shown in Fig. 5, and the dovetail in Fig. 7. Acorresponding wedging and dovetailed socket, h, is formed in the top ofthe shoe, either at the toe, as in Fig. 5, or at the side, as in Fig. 6,accordingly as the weight is to be used at the front or the side of thefoot. The slide is inserted in this socket from the inside of the shoe,and by moving it outward, and when in proper position to fit the weightto the hoof, it tightens in place, and when the shoe is nailed to thehoof the shank is fast and can never get out of place The top of theslide is flush with the top of the shoe. which obviates the necessity ofcutting a notch or cavity in the foot. Any horseshoer can prepare theparts.

The quarter-slots a a enable the eccentric Weight to be applied upon thecircular head f in any desired direction, so that the length will standup and down vertically, or forward and back horizontally; and as one endis heavier than the other, owing to the eccentricity, the preponderanceof weight may be adjusted exactly as desired to meet the requirements ofthe case.

The device is simple, cheap, and effective, as the weight can be castwith the cavities therein, and these cavities are so deep as to preventthe possibility of misplacement of the device by the rough usage towhich it is subjected.

I do not claim, broadly, an adjustable toeweight, as such is shown inPatent No. 209,840; but

I claim- The combination of the toe-weight B, provided with thecavity 1) and slots a a a a on its inner face, and the shank 0, providedwit-h a circular head, f, and arm 0, fitting said cavity and slots, andthe wedging and dovetailed slide d, fitting a corresponding wedging anddovetailed socket, h, of the shoe, as shown and described, and for thepurpose specified.

In witness whereof I have hereunto signed my name in the presence of twosubscribing witnesses.

LEOPOLD SOHMITT.

Witnesses:

R. F. Oseoon, R. E. WHITE.

